May 10, 2012

Samsung Buys Music Streaming Service mSpot

Samsung Electronics announced plans to buy mSpot to take advantage of the company's niche at streaming music and films to smartphones and tablets.

A local South Korean newspaper reported that Samsung is paying $8.76 million for the cloud-based content service provider.

MSpot specializes in providing cloud-based content services, including music and movies, and currently caters to about 30 mobile devices developed by Samsung, Apple and Research In Motion, the Maeil Business Newspaper reported.

"MSpot shares our vision to bring a best-in-class cloud and streaming entertainment experience to consumers and they've backed it up with great technical solutions," Samsung media solution center senior vice president TJ Kang said in a statement.

Samsung said mSpot music, video and radio services will be a key integrated on newly announced mobile devices.

The Silicon Valley company was started in 2004, and faces heavy competition with Google and Amazon, both of which offer online music storage and streaming services. The service also offers streaming radio, similar to Pandora and Spotify.

"Samsung is unparalleled in terms of global reach and cutting edge devices," mSpot Chief Executive Officer Daren Tsui said in a statement. "With our combined resources, we are looking forward to redefining media consumption across the mobile universe with cloud services."

MSpot Movies include a club pan that discounts top hits if a user commits to purchasing multiple movies online. Its storage service also allows users to upload 5 gigabytes of data, which can be accessed through a mobile device.

Samsung said in a press release the combination will extend mSpot's streaming services, while further enhancing Samsung's mobile and tablet device entertainment offerings.